Picking Up the Pieces
by Rye Mellark
Summary: 'No. I don't remember any of you. I can't recognise your faces. I don't remember who I am or even if my name is really Tamaki as you say,' the fair-headed youth replied with a sombre tone, before lowering his head in shame. 'I'm sorry if I'm not and can't be the person you were expecting to return. I'm sorry for causing all of you pain.' Chapter 4 now up.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **Ouran High School Host Club and all of its characters are the properties of Bisco Hatori. I do not own anything from the series apart from the ideas floating inside my mind.

**Author's Notes:** This is my work of fiction not involving texts in the form of books (and the odd playstation game in the past). I also would like to hear from you guys whether or not you could relate to this story, if it whets your anime appetite and if it catches your fancy.

For those people who have subscribed to my other stories, _The __Ranger's Son_ and _The Genovesan_, don't worry, I have not given up on those stories. However, I have quite the busy university year and I would most likely only be able to start truly updating the stories once I complete my first year.

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The crystalline cocoon of oblivion encasing the sleeping form of a fair-haired adolescent began to crack and shatter. The waves of soothing numbness were receding quickly. Taking its place was an insipid pain that radiated from an area a few inches above his nape. Awareness was calling out to him, an ethereal voice beckoning him to open his eyes and return to reality. In response, his body began to stir. Soon, his eyelids parted to reveal a pair of purple depths. Blinking a few times to clear his vision, the youth soon found himself lying on an adjustable reclining bed, surrounded by a group of people whose face bore concerned looks.

He had no recollection of who these people were. Any prior events that may have happened in his life have all been wiped out without a single trace left behind for him to pick up. Despite of this, he felt convinced that they somehow knew him personally; that maybe, they were all close companions before. However, not knowing what to say or how to act in this situation, he decided to remain silent and supress the panic building inside—unwilling to further burden those who were around him.

For a while, all he could hear was the alarmingly syncopated beating of his own heart and the individual breathing patterns of the other six individuals present. That was until two of them broke the silence.

'Milord, aren't we glad you're finally awake,' exclaimed two identical grinning auburn-headed youths who were standing just to the right of his bed.

'So, how are you feeli—' one of them began to ask before being interrupted.

'You've got us so darn worried senpai! Don't go on being a heroic idiot if it's going to cost you your life,' said a dark haired boy sitting closely to his left.

The same boy lowered his head a moment later and the fair-haired youth notice what appeared to be tears beginning to stream down the other adolescent's face.

Even if he did not know who the boy was, the blond youth felt compelled to try and stop him from being upset. Somehow, he couldn't bear the thought of having other people be lonely as well.

'Gomenasai,' the blond youth replied weakly. 'It won't happen again.'

Wincing, he reached out and wrapped his hand around the trembling fist of the other youth, trying to console the other boy even if he himself did not know what he had done. This action elicited the brunet to look up curtly, tears staining his cheeks. There was a look of incredulity in his eyes as far as the blond boy could tell.

'Tama-chan, is everything alright? You don't seem to be yourself,' asked a fair-headed child who was clutching a stuffed toy rabbit close to his chest. Out of all the people present, he appeared to be the youngest—probably no more than twelve years of age.

'I…er…can't really say everything is alright ototo-chan. My head hurts awfully bad and I feel kinda dizzy,' the bedridden blond replied, assuming that the slight-framed boy was his younger sibling. If his sense of colour was right, then he was fairly certain that his hair had almost the same shade as the younger boy.

'But Tama-chan…I'm not your younger brother,' the child replied with reluctance.

'Oh,' the fair-headed youth replied. Focusing and following the intricate patterns embroidered on the blanket allowed him to mask his alarm into something more in line with a dazed expression. 'Gomen ne.'

'I had hope that his accident wouldn't have resulted in this happening. That head injury was worse than I have initially suspected,' a raven-haired adolescent stated, fixing his glasses.

'You're hurting inside as we speak but even then, you're still trying to be a good friend and keep us calmed down aren't you,' asked the raven-haired youth who was standing at the foot of the bed, his eyes directly meeting the blond adolescent's own. 'Be honest Tamaki, you don't remember any of us?'

In response, Tamaki broke away from eye contact and shook his head.

'No. I don't remember any of you. I can't recognise your faces. I don't remember who I am or even if my name is really Tamaki as you say,' the fair-headed youth replied with a sombre tone, before lowering his head in shame.

Seconds passed and the full gravity of the situation began to unravel itself before him. His former life has slipped away from his grasp only to be replaced by a blank slate. Unwritten. Untouched. Lifeless. All the times he must have had spent with the people surrounding him had vanished much like a wisp of vapour during a summer's day.

'I'm sorry if I'm not and can't be the person you were expecting to return. I'm sorry for causing all of you pain. I'm sorry. I'm sorry! I'm sorry,' Tamaki said before tears began rolling down his cheeks.

He did not know if his former self had ever shed a tear but at this point in time, he couldn't care less. He did not understand why fate had decided to play such a foul, cruel prank on him. Wasn't it enough that he was physically hurting and broken? Why couldn't have destiny spared his memories from leaving him behind? These were the thoughts that were racing inside his mind as his body began to shake in despair.

In desperation, Tamaki closed his eyes, trying to shut out everything in a futile attempt to focus and scour the recesses of his mind for even a scrap of memory. It must have been the first time in his life that he felt so afraid. His heart was palpitating; cold beads of sweat running down his temples. Fate has placed him in a situation where he was not sure what to do; nor did he know what his former self would have done.

Currently, he had no tangible information to calm his nerves down. Even if he may have been whom the raven-haired boy referred to as Tamaki, that fact did not console him in the least. He felt like he was merely the living shell of the boy who used to inhabit the body he was in. Somehow, the accident did not only hurt him physically; it had left him emotionally scarred, a gaping hole torn out from his identity. If this was a nightmare, he wanted it to end. He wanted everything to revert to the way it was. But deep down, he knew it was impossible—that reality was far more complex that what oblivion had to offer.

Without any warning, slender arms lightly picked him up off the bed and soon wrapped around his lean torso. That act alone had surprised Tamaki who had by now opened his eyes to see that the dark-haired adolescent was the one who had embraced him.

'Tamaki-senpai. You baka! I can't believe you're restraining yourself from freaking out just so we can feel a little more relieved. You might have lost your memories but we don't care. We'll always be here for you no matter what happens,' the brunet said while nestling his chin on Tamaki's shoulder.

One by one, the rest of the group drew closer to him, each one adding to the growing cluster of hugs except for the bespectacled youth and a tall silent figure who was merely standing adjacent to the slight-framed child. Tamaki's heart rate was slowing down and perhaps even returning back to normal. The loneliness that he felt was slowly easing away.

'Whether you gain your memories back or not milord, well always stand by your side. You could always gain new ones anyway,' said the identical twins in perfect unison.

'It might be a long road to recovery but in the end, we're confident that you'll get through this. Ain't that right Takashi,' asked the slight-framed boy who turned to face the lumbering adolescent behind him.

'Yes, Mitsukuni,' replied the tall adolescent as his gaze moved from the young boy to Tamaki.

Once the hugs have died away and everyone had given Tamaki some space for a breather, the lanky youth landed his gaze from one face to another, his hands wiping away the tears that had blurred his vision.

'I don't know how to thank you guys enough,' Tamaki said with a sliver of a smile cutting through his expression.

'Well Tamaki Suoh, learning our names would be a start. I'm Ootori Kyouya, the person you considered your best friend,' said the bespectacled youth with a smile that Tamaki considered devious but ironically inviting at the same time.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **Ouran High School Host Club and all of its characters are the properties of Bisco Hatori. I do not own anything from the series apart from the ideas floating inside my mind.

**Author's notes:** Finally! I've uploaded another chapter once again guys. Please bear with me if my writing has gone down the drain compared to my other works of fiction present in this site. It has been quite a daunting task seeing that a lot of people write for OHSHC and that there are highly talented writers out there.

It's been quite a while since I've done any serious creative writing as the pre-med course offered in my university drains the time and creativity out of me. :(

I do hope you enjoy this chapter as I have enjoyed writing it though. And if it's not such a bother, I do hope you read my other stories as well.

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Chapter 2

There was an awfully surreal sensation which Tamaki had while looking at a reflection that, until two days ago, he did not know belonged to him. He was staring at a highly polished mirror, still unbelieving the lean-framed individual in front of him was the next in line to inherit one of Japan's largest conglomerations or that he owned a mansion all to himself. He wasn't sure if he should have considered himself lucky as being rich did not turn out to be such a blessing after at all.

Having spent roughly four days living as he did, the blond adolescent had come to the realisation that the pampered lifestyle associated with luxury was quite debilitating, if not, suffocating to say the least. He found it highly obtrusive and bizarre to have servants doing every piece of work for him—menial or otherwise. There wasn't anything wrong with him to try and cook his own breakfast during the weekend was there? Even if he had lost his memories, Tamaki was quite sure he was able to fabricate a palatable or at least an edible meal without burning the mansion down.

The adolescent thought of himself much like a caged sparrow. Tamaki's mansion—his own metaphorical cage—was the thing that offered him shelter from the outside world and yet, it was the very same thing that held him captive. But he knew that what today offered was a long awaited respite. It was the beginning of a new school week and Tamaki was eager for the chance to bolt free from his residence—even if it was only for a short amount of time.

During a meeting with a developmental psychologist from two days ago, the blond youth was advised to transfer back to first year high school in order to compensate for his lost memories. As it was explained to him, the boy's memory loss was due to a specific case of retrograde amnesia. His episodic memories—those which were autobiographical in nature—were the ones affected; along with his more recent semantic memories—general knowledge he has learnt. According to the specialist appointed by his father, it would only have caused Tamaki trouble if he was to plunge himself in classes that required concepts that built upon those learnt a year prior.

In the hopes of triggering back his memories, Tamaki's father had arranged his course in such a manner wherein he was constantly in the same classes as Fujioka Haruhi and the Hitachiin twins, Kaoru and Hikaru. Even with the little time he had spent with them, the adolescent had already felt comfortable in their company. However, there was still some trepidation on Tamaki's part. He didn't know if he could play the role of his former self or even if he wanted to any longer.

After waking up from his accident, the adolescent made it his mission to find out about who he was as a person. This action involved coaxing and pleading with the mansion's head-housekeeper, Maezono Shima to reveal his personality prior to the accident. Even though there was reluctance from her side, the old woman gave in with a sigh of resignation—commenting that it was for Tamaki's best interest that he knew. As he was scribbling down each characteristic in a notepad, he quickly realised how detached he was from his former self.

_A natural born charmer. _

_Childish. _

_Overly emotional. _

_Driven by caprice._

_Stubborn._

_Ignorant of 'my' own feelings._

And the list went on. It felt like he was writing the description of an entirely different person until Shima began to relate the positive side of his former personality. Despite of all his flaws, Tamaki had been given some solace knowing that he was a person that loved to evoke smiles on other people's faces and had a strong moral compass.

A knock on his bathroom door interrupted the youth's train of thoughts. Realising that he had wasted enough of his time, he broke his gaze away from the reflective surface of the mirror and fastened the final buttons of his shirt before putting on his school blazer.

'Tamaki-sama, since you're up so early, I've come to inform you that if you're dying to make your own breakfast, this _could_ be your opportunity,' Tamaki heard the head-housekeeper say.

'R…really, Shima-san? You mean…you're not going to stop me today,' Tamaki asked as he bolted for the door and opened it with much enthusiasm.

'Let's just say that all of the staff have their hands full at the moment,' the old woman said with a knowing smile.

'But…why are you doing this for me,' the adolescent asked, slightly bewildered by this abrupt change of events.

'Because even if I'm not telepathic, I know that you're not comfortable with this way of life any longer, bocchama.' Another affectionate smile crossed her lips.

'And if you choose to live in a way, more in line with the working class, I won't stop you any longer, Tamaki-sama. This accident might have changed you, but I could honestly see that you're changing for the better.'

Tamaki looked at the silver-haired woman, unable to contain the emotions deep inside him. Tears welled from his eyes as the adolescent wrapped his arms around Shima's tiny frame.

'Oh Shima-san, thank you for understanding me,' the boy cried out laughing in elation. 'You don't know much of a burden you've taken off my chest.'

Just then, Shima's delicate hand patted the back of Tamaki's head. It was a gesture the blond youth did not expect to receive but it was something he graciously welcomed.

'You're welcome Tamaki-bocchama,' the youth heard her say before giving out a warm, mellow chuckle.

'Shima-san, before I head off to the kitchen, can I ask another favour from you,' the boy said before breaking the embrace, his hands still holding the elderly woman's shoulders.

'And what favour would that exactly be, bocchama?'

'Can you please stop referring to me as bocchama, Shima-san? Calling me by my first name is enough already and if that seems too much, Tamaki-kun would be just fine,' the adolescent said with an unsure smile, with one of his eyebrows raised expectantly.

'That might take me some getting used to, but I think I'll get there eventually, Tamaki…kun,' the woman said.

'Well, I'll go ahead and make breakfast ne, Shima-san,' Tamaki called out before spinning on the ball of his heels and heading off in the direction of the mansion's kitchen. 'And don't worry, Shima-san, I'll make some for you as well. I just have to get my bento box ready too. Goodness knows how long that'll take.'

As he made his way down the flight of stairs, Tamaki felt a part of him had once again seen the light of day. After four days of feeling entrapped and misunderstood, there was an overwhelming and exhilarating sense of joy that made him almost bounce off the walls. Each maid and employee that Tamaki went past was greeted with a smile and a curt 'ohayou' before he returned to his task at hand. Quite soon, wherever the fair-haired adolescent looked, a cheerful face greeted him back.

_Maybe it was as Shima-san said. Maybe everything just might be for the better_, the boy thought to himself.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: **Ouran High School Host Club and all of its characters are the properties of Bisco Hatori. I do not own anything from the series apart from the ideas floating inside my mind. That and probably some sushi I had bought today. (Fancy tuna anyone? Or how about some scrumptious strawberry cheesecake?)

**Author's notes:** I would like to firstly thank those people who have followed, reviewed and added this story to their favourites. (Arigatou Gozaimasu minna-san)

To _**hphilgreen**_ and _**Etcher-Sketcher**_, I'm happy you guys noticed what I intended to do, i.e: how Tamaki still had some remnants of his old self. I do hope however that you guys get to like what Tamaki's character is shaping up to be in this chapter.

I would also like to apologise for the long delay before the story was updated. Let's just say that I have been trying to polish my writing skills once more. I think I may have—at long last—developed the writing style I'll be using for this work of fiction. I just hope the quality of this chapter is up to scratch with my other stories...

Anyway, I do hope you guys enjoy reading this chapter. Cheerio! ^_^

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Chapter 3

Everything was a blur of colours. There were no distinct shades, just swift instances of hues intermingling in and amongst themselves. Then there were the intermittent streaks of light dancing in an endless, haphazard manner. It was mesmerising—captivating even. Mundane things seem to have captured his attention quite easily. It was to be expected. How long has it been again? Four days. Perhaps, it was the consequence of being cooped up. Or maybe, it was something entirely unrelated. He wasn't quite sure of the answer himself. But it didn't take long until things finally came into focus once more. The muddle of colours was gone. In its place was a convergence of lines and curves.

The limousine had come to a halt. He took in his surroundings with awe, barely reminding himself to keep his mouth completely shut. He kept reminding himself that he knew the things and events going on around him. After all, these were part of his memories that presumably weren't affected by his accident. Or at least, that was what he dearly hoped so. And yet, there was a never ending sense of peculiarity to know that at the same time, this was his first instance to experience it all. It might have been the thousandth occasion he had physically been here, but it didn't really matter. Everything was distantly familiar but utterly foreign all the same.

His amethyst eyes strayed from the high-rise buildings towering over him to the mass of people now crossing the busy patch of street before him. Moments passed and soon the last of the crowd had traversed the crossing. From afar, he could see that the blinking red light had turned green. The limousine began to inch its way forward once again. As the wheels on the vehicle kept rolling against the asphalt surface, so did Tamaki's mind.

He thought of how the dynamics of his life were all over the place much like a crystal that had shattered into a million shards upon impact. He could only assume that as time passed, those pieces would slowly gather up and resettle themselves into something sensible. For the time being, however, he just had to accept that it was going to be a long, highly unpredictable journey. One day, maybe he'll wake up remembering everything. The alternative would have meant that his memories were lost forever. But if that ended up being the case, would that have been so bad?

_You could always gain new ones anyway_. That was what the Hitachiin Twins had told him a few days ago. A slight smile crossed his lips. Tamaki held on to that thought, barring the apprehension trying to work its way into his consciousness. He had to admit, he was thinking far _too _much. He needed to calm himself and stay away from such musings. Trying to redirect his flow of thoughts, he decided to busy himself by reorganising his scholastics material. Feeling that the deliberate self-distraction wasn't enough, the blond youth took out his school diary to go over his timetable for a second round. As he flicked through the journal, something out of the corner of his vision tore his attention away from the string of words printed on the page.

He turned his head to find a boy walking along a sidewalk parallel to the direction his limousine was taking, seemingly lost in thought as he was. The other boy was clad in the same powder blue attire as Tamaki. As the vehicle moved further along the road, the blond adolescent finally managed to see who the other student was. It was Fujioka Haruhi—the boy who had simultaneously scolded him, called him a _baka_ but ultimately eased his fraying nerves. Without any further contemplation, the blond youth had asked his chauffeur to park to car.

Unlike the past four days of his new 'old' existence, Tamaki had thought—most, if not all—things through. It even came to a point of overly complicating things that were meant to be taken lightly. However, there was something about what the other youth had done. It was something that had even caused Tamaki to act on—dare he say it—impulse. He wanted to thank the other boy for knocking some sense into him; to extend his gratitude for the hug that comforted him in a time where his mental state was a painful mess.

The car had eased its way into a parked position at the moment the fair-headed boy began to undo his seatbelt. There was a flurry of apologies and an explanation to his chauffeur that he would be going on foot from that point onwards before Tamaki managed to find himself standing on the concrete sidewalk. A few more seconds passed before he heard the car's engine coming back to life and then finally dying away as it drove into the distance.

He was looking straight at the shorter youth, who had his head lowered all this time. The blond youth was unsure of what he was going to say—let alone had any idea on how to get the other boy's attention. In the end, Tamaki slowly raised his hand to wave and just went for the most common greeting he could think of.

'Ohayou gozaimasu, Haruhi-kun,' Tamaki said with a lopsided grin.

Tamaki observed how the other boy reacted with the faintest traces of interest and concern evident on his face. The brunet jerked his head with a start. From what the blond youth could tell, Haruhi look fairly surprised to see him. Whether the boy was surprised in a good or a bad way, Tamaki couldn't really ascertain. He just hoped it was the former.

'O…ohayou gozaimasu, Tamaki-senpai,' the other boy said, looking somewhat flustered.

'I…is there something wrong Haruhi-kun? I promise, I don't bite,' Tamaki said jokingly—trying his best to lighten up the atmosphere.

There was a split second where his purple eyes made contact with the other's deep brown depths before Haruhi lowered his head again. Within that fleeting moment, Tamaki had spotted something that puzzled him. Right before the dark-haired boy broke away from his gaze, the fair-headed adolescent honestly believed he saw what appeared to be the beginnings of a blush painting across the other boy's cheeks. _No. Haruhi-kun couldn't have been blushing_, Tamaki thought uncertainly. _It must've been the sun playing tricks with my sight_, Tamaki tried to reason and convince himself. _Either that or it's because this morning is quite chilly_.

The boy tried to come up with a list of possible explanations, each one of them trying to avoid an underlying question that was bothering him. He had to mentally pause and question his own actions. Was it even normal for a guy to observe others' reactions and body language pedantically? With this thought rattling inside his mind, a disconcerting sensation of heat began to spread across Tamaki's own cheeks. Embarrassed by this awkward turn of events, Tamaki placed the hand he had been waving, just moments ago, on his nape. His fingers gently ran through blond locks, all the while wishing that his blush would go away and spare him some shame.

'Nothing's wrong senpai. I…it's just that I…er…wasn't expecting to see you. Here. Of all places,' Haruhi replied weakly. A second had not even passed after what he uttered before the shorter youth abruptly placed a hand in front of his mouth.

'No! I mean—that's not what I meant to say Tamaki-senpai! It's just that…I've never seen you walk to Ouran before and I'm just really surprised,' the brunet said, accompanied by a stifled—perhaps even a nervous—chuckle.

'Gomen, Haruhi-kun. It's just that I saw you earlier and I really wanted to thank you,' Tamaki said without taking his hand off the back of his neck—the newfound idiosyncrasy seemed to be effective at calming himself down.

'Thank _me_? But what did I do to deserve thanks, senpai,' asked the brunet.

'Well…apart from calling me _baka_, Haruhi-kun,' Tamaki said with a nostalgic smile, 'you were the _first_ person in the hospital to have calmed me down. And…that hug…it took away a lot of the loneliness I was feeling at the time.'

'Senpai, you don't really have to thank me. It's what friends do for each other.'

'I guess so,' Tamaki mused. 'So…we should probably start walking to school, ne Haruhi-kun? I don't think both of us could afford running late.'

The brunet nodded in agreement. The blond youth quickly stepped to the side, allowing the shorter boy to pass through. Tamaki then followed suit, falling into the same pace and stride as the younger one—the two sharing an affable silence. The adolescent had stumbled upon the conclusion that there was something soothing about being in the other's company. And for once, his entire world treaded on the grounds of normality. It was almost as if he could've been just another male student in high school.

'Er…Haruhi-kun,' the lean-framed adolescent said after a while; allowing his words to hang in the air.

'Yes, senpai?'

'You could say another reason why I decided to walk was because I didn't want to be dropped off by a limousine inside the campus,' Tamaki said just as it dawned on him. 'I don't know. I guess that that would've gained unnecessary attention from other students and I…I just don't feel really comfortable with too much attention directed towards me.'

The last thing that fair-headed youth expected from the other boy as a reply was a burst of energetic laughter. Surprised, Tamaki turned his head to see the shorter boy wiping away what appeared to be tears with his delicate fingers. He waited until the brunet's laughter eventually died out.

'I don't get it Haruhi-kun,' the boy said, raising a quizzical eyebrow. 'Was there something funny with what I said? I _was_ being serious, you know.' Even if he wasn't insulted even in the least, the lanky youth couldn't help but give a slight pout. A friendly banter wouldn't have done any harm now, would it?

'Well…you were the type of person who loved the limelight and being the centre of attention, senpai. I just couldn't have imagined you being discomforted by a thing you used to indulge in. But...that was still uncalled for. Gomen, Tamaki-senpai,' the youth said, turning his head only to face a pouting Tamaki.

He tucked in his lower lip, a smile replacing his earlier pout. 'Sou ka,' the fair-haired boy said out in contemplation.

'Well, I can't exactly be who the former Tamaki once was, Haruhi-kun. I'd be fooling myself if I even tried to—' He gave out a soft chuckle. '—but I'm glad I got you to smile.'

'Arigatou, Tamaki-senpai,' the dark-haired boy said, reciprocating Tamaki's gesture.

A few more minutes of walking and the two boys eventually reached the school's entrance. Just as both of them began to make their way through the gates, the blond youth remembered to say something that almost slipped away from his mind.

'By the way Haruhi-kun, I don't think calling me senpai would be appropriate anymore,' Tamaki said as he looked up and placed the tip of his left index finger against his lower lip.

'What do you mean senpai?'

Meeting the gaze of the younger boy, Tamaki said guiltily, 'I guess I forgot to mention that I've been transferred down to first year Haruhi-kun. From now on, we'll be classmates.'


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: **Ouran High School Host Club and all of its characters are the properties of Bisco Hatori. I do not own anything from the series apart from the ideas floating inside my mind. That and a lot of practice exams for my coming end-of-semester/year exams for 1st year university.

**Author's notes:** Once again to all those people who have followed, added this story to their favourite list and what not, thank you so much. To hear your feedback means a lot. (Doumo arigatou, minna-san. **NB:** Please ignore the fact that I am not well versed in Japanese.)

I am sorry for the long time before this new update guys. I have recently gone back to uni after a 2-week mid-semester holiday break and let me tell you, it's a killer. If you expect university life to be a breeze because there's less contact hours, you will be sorely disappointed. Sadly, I will have to announce that this will be my last update up until **November 15, 2012** as I will be focusing on my studies.

To **Robbase231**, I'm glad you liked the story so far. In relation to what you said about what will Tamaki think of himself, bits of it will be revealed in this chapter.

To **Pookiewoo**, I will get to address the issue concerning Tamaki's accident in a later chapter. However, let's just say that he obviously saved someone dear to him. (_***cue coughing**_*****_)_

To **jesusfreak917**, I have to agree on what you said. The whole "commoner" way of living is not a fascination any more though. It's actually going to be incorporated in his life.

And finally, to **Etcher-Sketcher**, I guess when I wrote about "mundane things", I thought of it in the sense of having common place/lackluster things that we would normally take them for granted. But in the end I suppose that commoner things _are_ mundane. If you liked the imagery, there's more imagery to come in this chapter as well.

Now, I know this is a huge chunk of AN's but it's gonna be a long time before I get to reply to any of you guys so I'm trying to make the most of it.

I shall now leave you to reading this new chapter in peace. Once again, cheerio! ^_^

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Chapter 4

There was the initial moment of awkwardness that was unwillingly shared between both teenagers after Tamaki informed of his study arrangements. Considering that the sounds brought about by the hustle and bustle of everyday life surrounded them, all Tamaki could hear was silence—deafening in every sense of the word. It was quite an ironic contradiction, really. Maybe, it even danced dangerously near the precipice of an overused cliché. How could silence deaden the hearing of people when there was no sound? That did not even seem logical at all. Yet, that was what exactly happened.

He saw the other boy and himself as two souls entrapped in a crystal dome, separated from the rest of the world. It was as if they were prisoners in time which had long frozen. A gossamer partition materialised in the midst of them, and soon, they were separated from each other as well. It was if all the barriers that the fair-headed youth had managed—and dearly wanted—to breakdown between him and Haruhi had re-established themselves all because of the words uttered from his lips. He saw that the other figure's brown eyes—almost a deep amber—were trembling ever so slightly. They conveyed such mixed emotions; so many unspoken words that Tamaki had a hard time deciphering every one of them. But there was one idea that solidified inside the blond youth's mind. It was too blatantly obvious for Tamaki to have ignored it. Haruhi was uncomfortable with the idea of having him as a classmate.

The blond youth wanted to flush the very thought out of his consciousness just as quickly as it had entered. As much as he wanted to deny it, he was hurting. It wasn't even his ego that had been broken and injured. It was more than that. It was painful to know that the person whom he had begun to open up to did not exactly want him to be a closer part of the other's world. He after all, had unveiled what meagre portion of his world he knew and warmly welcomed the other boy inside. All that camaraderie that they had shared earlier, was that for nought?

What kind stupidity had the former Tamaki done in order to force the dark-haired boy back into a cautious and wary state just as he stated those words? Did it involve any form of minor harassment? He mentally shook his head. No. That could not have been the case. If it was, the boy should have run away in fear already. Haruhi had even said that they were friends. But were they really? Sifting through their earlier conversation, the way the brunet delivered those lines were genuine. There was no sign in his voice of being coerced into it. But, if they truly were friends, why was the dark-haired boy so reluctant of the idea? Was his old self a pestering, obnoxious individual that Shima-san had failed to inform him?

With determination, he locked his gaze with the other boy's eyes, his own eyes pleading for a chance to prove himself. His purple depths were begging the other boy to look at him just as he is now. He wanted to escape that shadow of his past, whatever it may have been. All that he desired at this moment in time was to be known as his own person; not to be compared with someone who bore the exact same face and body as he did. Holding a bated breath, he anticipated the worst possible reaction from the other boy. He wanted to think otherwise but the experience he previously gained had already broken through his mental barriers and tainted his way of thinking. It then came as such a relief when slowly—painstakingly—the brunet's eyes stopped their erratic movements.

The thin sheet that had set itself up in between them began to melt away. The dome that enveloped them was no longer there. The tension was now thankfully gone. How long has it been since they've stared at each other? If Tamaki took the burning sensation in his throat and the light-headedness as any indication, it must've been a long time. Suddenly realising that his lungs were screaming at him to breath, he took a huge intake of air which immediately soothed his aching chest. It took some time before the throbbing in his head from the lack of oxygen had lessened enough for him to concentrate on other things beside respiration. Despite of all this, he did not take break away from the other's gaze.

The other boy had flashed what Tamaki could describe as an apologetic look. In return, the blond youth released a sigh of relief he had been holding onto. A smile crept along his lips, encompassing both his gratitude and an attempt to reassure his companion. With this, he was glad to see that the brunet's face had relaxed completely. Just as Tamaki had begun to form the words _thank you_ with his lips, blurs of auburn had taken him by surprise. The fair-headed youth soon found himself tackled down on the concrete ground, his torso encased by two pairs of lean arms. It was lucky that his head had landed on a human torso rather than the solid slab of concrete. By now, the precious air that he had just recently been reacquainted with had been knocked out of him. Suddenly disorientated, it took quite a few seconds for his mind to even register who the newcomers—or what could have been more correctly be described as assailants—were.

'Milord! You wouldn't believe how happy we are to see you,' a duet of familiar voices said with equal amounts of vivacity and fervour.

So, it was the Hitachiin twins then. Tamaki couldn't help but inwardly chuckle at the siblings' way of displaying their affection towards him. _Were they always like this in the past?_ Resigning himself to keep still, the blond boy allowed himself to stare at clouds swimming against an endless sea of azure. There was really no use in wasting his energy to escape the grasps of the twins. He had to take everything in stride. At least, they just appeared to be quite happy to see him. If he tried to break away from this little moment they were sharing with him, the action could be taken wrongly by the auburn-headed adolescents. In the end, wasn't this what he wanted; to have friends and everything associated with it?

'Hikaru! Kaoru! Would both you please get off of sen—' Tamaki heard Haruhi speaking before the brunet cut himself off.

'I mean, Tamaki-kun.' Tamaki found it oddly amusing how the brunet appeared to be clearing his throat after correcting himself.

'Come on, Haruhi,' the boy to his left protested, 'you can't blame us for smothering milord. It took him a month to wake up. We missed him. A _lot_.'

What the boy said had startled Tamaki. All this time, he had assumed that he was in a state of unconscious for what could have only been a maximum of a few days. No one in his household had even spoken a single word about it—not even Shima. It was probably for his own good that they kept it to a minimum anyway. Perhaps, he was that emotionally shaken and fragile that head-housekeeper and the rest of the staff decided to not take the risk of him breaking down. Well, that was the only thing that made any sense to Tamaki as he pondered, lost in his musings.

Ever since he had woken up, the blond youth had not given a single thought about his accident. He had not asked anything related to the fateful event—a plausible reason why no in the mansion gave him any information. Only now in his current state—awkwardly positioned in-between two lean bodies and tackled onto the ground—did he realised how little he knew of the circumstances of whatever he had been involved in.

'Exactly, Haruhi. Our hospital visit didn't even last half a day and we thought it'd be a long time before we could see him again. I'm sure that to have milord back in Ouran as soon as possible was something all of us wanted, right,' the other auburn-haired boy chimed in; effectively cutting off the Tamaki's train of thoughts.

'O…of course. We all wanted him to come back soon,' Tamaki barely heard the other boy's soft reply after a long amount of silence.

'But th…that's not the point Hikaru! You two could've injured Tamaki-kun with that tackle of yours. And because of you two, we're _all_ running late. So…if you twins could be _considerate_ enough, let go of him. _Now_.'

Hearing Haruhi's voice going up a notch, Tamaki decided to intervene before the situation escalated into a full blown argument. 'Hikaru-kun, Kaoru-kun, you know—' the blond boy began, his voice considerably constrained by the lack of air.

'—it'd be really great if you could listen to Haruhi-kun. It _is_ kinda hard to breath with you guys embracing me this tight.'

His words seemed to have the desired effect. In no time, the lanky youth had found himself off the ground, the twins having simultaneously offered him a helping hand and an apology. The fair-headed teenager couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed. A small part of him wanted to shrink back into a corner and vanish momentarily from sight. He had been the centre of their argument after all. However, Tamaki did not want to allow some kneejerk reaction to overrun his resolve.

Blaming himself, the blond youth felt obliged to steer his companions away from anything that could fuel further conflict. Admittedly, this was the least he could do given the current situation. However, pondering on what to say proved to be the lanky youth's own undoing in the end. While Tamaki was still at lost for words, the twins had already resumed where their conversation had left off—much to the blond boy's dismay. _So much for acting as damage control_, Tamaki thought ruefully, inwardly smacking a palm flat against his face.

'What's up with you anyway Haruhi,' the twins said before the fair-headed youth felt the upper section of the boys' backs slightly digging against his shoulders. He had to inwardly cringe. A moment ago, the twins were showing affection and the next, he was being used as a post to be leaned upon.

'How come you're calling milord by his first name all of a sudden,' asked the boy leaning on his left shoulder. His voice was a tad higher than other youth, marred by a distinct but subtle hoarseness. If Tamaki's guess was correct, then the youth would have been Kaoru. The manner the boy spoke was roundabout the same as the younger twin during his hospital visit.

'And you got him to walk with you to school too, Haruhi,' the other boy said, ending his sentence with a gasp that seemed a bit forced—contrived. 'I can't help but think that you and milord are officially a couple now.'

If Tamaki was drinking a cup of coffee in that instant, he would have probably spit out a mouthful of finely sprayed caffeine. If there was one thing that he confidently knew ever since he had woken up, it was the fact that he was attracted to humans of the opposite gender. This also appeared to be the case with Haruhi. Sure, the brunet may have been more androgynous than what could have been expected for a male his age. Nonetheless, it did not necessarily equate to what the auburn-headed adolescent—whom Tamaki presumed to be Hikaru—had said.

'Hikaru-kun,' Tamaki began to say, his face a healthy shade of red. The poor boy was in such a flustered state that he failed to realised the weight on his right shoulder had lessened quite a degree.

'I think you've gotten this all wrong! H…ho…how could Haruhi-kun and I become a couple? I mean, I'm biologically and mentally male and I presume that Haruhi-kun is too. Okay, his eyes may be larger than most guys b…bu…but not everyone fits the cookie-cutter stereotype of what a man should look like anyway, right? For example, I have to admit that my lashes are longer in comparison to the average female. Besides, Haruhi-kun and I have only known each other for less than a day due to my memory issues. And the reason he's calling me by my first name is because I asked him to. I thought it would've been awkward and out-of-place since I'm in the same year level and class as you guys are,' the blond teenager spluttered out with the occasional stutter interspersed throughout his outburst.

By the end of his uninterrupted explanation, the blond student was breathing deeply; unconsciously trying his best to fill his deprived lungs with some much needed air. It was only now that he realised the twins had placed themselves midway between Haruhi and himself. Their amber gazes moved from Tamaki to the other boy opposite him, their eyes wide with bewilderment.

'What,' the boys cried out in chorus. 'Hang on! Let us get this straight.'

'Haruhi, so you're saying milord's in Class 1-A…with _us_,' the twin with the huskier voice queried.

'Yes Kao—'

'And you managed to identify that I was Hikaru without any help from Haruhi, milord,' the other boy said with incredulity, pointing an index finger to his face.

'I guess so Hika—'

'Does that mean no one has told you of Haruhi's _actual_ gender, milord,' the twins asked, resuming their synchronous way of speech.

'No—,' Tamaki began to reply before the rest of his words hitched at the back of his throat. There was something in the way that the twins had said it that shook the foundation of what he had believed all this time. His gaze jumped from either twin to the brunet. His purple eyes had become unco-ordinated—randomly flickering from left to right. Reality,as it appeared, had an odd satisfaction of gutting him when he least expected it. His heart was pounding painfully against the cage of his chest. It must have been his imagination but it felt as if his face was a whole degree warmer than earlier. Was that even truly possible?

_How come it's getting harder to breathe?_

'H…Ha…Haruhi-kun, you're a…' Tamaki mumbled with a shaky voice; taking a gulp of non-existent saliva to moisten his drying throat.

'You're a _girl_,' were the last things he had managed to say before his world blacked out.


End file.
